The Path to the Promise
by Max7272
Summary: Fang Ride and his friend Iggy are two famous singers. They've gotten everything in life handed to them...or so it's thought anyway. When Iggy's family decided to take in a mysterious new girl named Max, what will happen? Will Max's promise haunt her? Will Fang's past catch up with him? And are the two somehow connected in ways deeper than anyone could imagine? FAX
1. Maximum Goodbye

Chapter 1

Max Pov:

"What the hell?" the words come out of my mouth before I even realize what I'm saying. "I can't! Angel has no one except me! She needs me! I'm almost 18, I-"

The woman scowls, but the man beside her looks as if he almost feels bad for me. "I'm sorry Miss Martinez, but your not an adult. Your almost sixteen, is that correct?" I can barely muster a nod. "You are not legally able to take care of your sister. Normally I'd ship you straight off to foster care, but there's someone who is deeply interested in you. Do you know how lucky you are? They are a close friend of mine. And your sister, there's a good opening for her down at the North Creek Orphanage."

All this talk about foster care and adoption and an orphanage, it doesn't seem real. On the inside I still imagined myself in a complete family. My mother didn't get into that car accident-my father didn't just slip away from me because of his disease. They were still here, and this was just a bad dream.

I'm just about to get down on my knees. And that's saying something, because Maximum Martinez does not plead. She does not beg. She is not weak.

That is-until it comes down to the last family she has.

I look at the social service man and woman. I hear Angel's footsteps from the upstairs, where she's most likely trying to hear our conversation through the air vents.

"Please." I say, "Please don't take her away from me. Isn't there something I can do? I'll do anything." We have no family, no friends that would take us in. "Just please don't take her away."

But my pleads are nothing against the law. And just before they leave, the man turns toward me. "You both have to be packed and ready to leave in a few hours. You will be delivered to the airport. Your new," he looks at the woman, as though asking her what to call them, "temporary family lives in California. Your sister will be taken to the foster home and taken care of."

And there gone, just like that. I don't have a clue on what I can say to Angel. Just as the door slams, she runs down the stairs into my arms.

"I heard everything." she says through her tears. "I don't want to leave you Max. Please take me with you. Don't let them take me." I pull her close to me and stroke her blond hair. I lift her face up to mine so I can look into her sparkling blue eyes, shiny from tears.

"I'm so sorry Angel."

Over the next few hours, as we pack and try and cherish the time we have left together, I go over every possible option we have. I think of running away with her, I really think about that one, but every idea of mine leads me to a dead end.

The hours go by dreadfully and much to fast. I don't want to leave Angel. I don't want to go live in a snooty little family down in California. I wanted to stay here in Arizona, my hometown, where I grew up. I wanted to stay here with Angel. I wanted to run away with Angel, where ever we had to go, as long as it was together.

But that wasn't the way it ended up.

I help Angel into a nice little blue jacket and give her a kiss. It's chilly outside and I don't want her getting cold. I get dressed in a loose white jacket and dark washed jeans with an old pair of tattered sneakers. I sling a jacket around my shoulder and help get Angel's things loaded.

I look at her carefully. "You call me, alright?" will they let her call me? What will it be like for her? "You stay safe. I love you so much." I pull her tight to my chest. "I promise I'll find you, Angel. I promise. As soon as I can get things sorted out, I'll find you again."

She nods into my shoulder and hesitantly walks away from me, following the woman. Something inside me crumbles at that moment. And I know, that no matter where I go, I'll never be able to feel happy again.

Time skip

The plane is huge. Especially considering that I had never been on one before. Once I'm seated I start thinking about what California will be like. I was told that my adoptive 'family' will be waiting for me at the airport when I arrive. I'm dreading it.

I watch as the airplane takes off and everything I know drifts farther and farther away from me...

Fang Pov:

When Iggy's mother decided to adopt a sister into his family, I was all for it. I mean, this would look so good for us. I could see it now, on the headline of the newspaper: "One of the superstars family generously decides to adopt." then they could put a nice little picture on there of Iggy, his new sister, and me on there. This will simply create more fans of our music. Not like we needed anymore, anyway, but still, I couldn't deny that if you were famous, if was a plus to look good in the public's eye. Plus if the sister was hot, I get first dibs.

You see, Iggy and I were very popular singers. We worked together on most of our music and songs. In the past few years we had been all around the America; tours and concerts and such. Then this spring we had decided to come back home to California together, where we grew up, and hangout for a while.

Iggy had a little brother to come back to; Gazzy. I had my sister Nudge. Iggy's mom had never adopted before, and I'm not yet entirely sure why she decided to now. We have the perfect life, down here in California. Our families live side by side right next to the ocean. Your probably wondering if we surf. My answer to that? Hell Yes.

I slip on some shoes and almost crash running into Iggy on the way out the door. "Are we leaving to get her yet?" I ask, and he nods. I slip on a baseball cap and jump into the expensive BMW of Iggy's moms.

Iggy jumps into the drivers seat. "Your mom is coming, isn't she?" I ask questionably.

"Nah. She wanted to, but she's in a hurry to get Max's room finished and I told her not to worry. Fangy and I have this handled."

I glare at him. "Call me that again and I'll kill you."

Iggy smiles. "Sure kid." his blond hair with a streak of blue is spiked up and his icy blue eyes look amused.

"Are you sure you wanna go meet your new sister looking like that?" I joke, but Iggy is quick to retort.

"Says Mr. Emo over here." he rolls his eyes and take a sharp turn to the right.

We slip out of the car and into the open, ignoring all of the looks from everyone that passed us. "So how do we know what she looks like?" I ask questioningly.

"Mom showed me a picture before we left. Blond hair, dark eyes, a tan. Bout this tall." he wavers his hand near his neck area. "5'6 or somethan."

I look for his description. At first I wonder if she's even here, but that's until I catch the eye of a beautiful girl walking toward us. Iggy's already seen her and is waving her over eagerly. I automatically do a full body scan.

She is gorgeous, I can tell you that. She had to be our age. She's slim but muscular, wearing clothes that tell you she is not from California. She's a deep tan with clear skin and a makeup less face. Her eyes are a warm brown, but they look bloodshot to. There are purple circles under her eyes, and her full lips aren't turned up into a smile, or down into a scowl. She just looks exhausted.

Truth be told, the kid looks miserable.

"Hi. I'm Iggy, your new brother." she doesn't even make eye contact with him, but gradually takes his hand and shakes it.

"This is Fang. Fang Ride. You've probably heard of us if they didn't tell you who we were already."

She looks at us blankly. I expect her to be swooning, or yelling out in happiness at the chance to live with one of the most popular singers around, but she stays quiet.

I offer my hands and she takes it. It surprises me how firm her hand shake is. "Nice to meet you." I say with a dazzling smile. Yet as we walk back to the car, she still seems as if she's in a daze.

She sits in the back and leans against the car window. Iggy and I exchange glances with each other. As if to say, "WTF is this?!"

I pull out my phone and start texting him.

Bold: Iggy Italics: Fang

_Wtf is up with this chick. I think your mom made a mistake._

**Man give her a chance. Maybe she came from a tough home or something**

_Maybe. She's hot though. I call dibs?_

Iggy slaps me from across the seats. His eyes dart back toward the girl.

"So what's your name again?"

This is the first time she speaks. Her voice is like velvet. But it's also a little raspy, like she'd been crying and hadn't talked for hours. "Maximum Martinez."

I look back at her. "You ever been to the ocean before?"

She shakes her head slowly, still avoiding any eye contact.

Iggy and I highfive. "We'll have a lot to teach you, then." The way she lacks interest in us begans to really irritate me. I mean, this kid has it good. She'll be able to be popular by hanging out with us, if it ends up like that, and with her looks, she'll have every one won over soon enough.

But there is that part of me that knows there must be a whole lot more to her. I myself had it easy growing up since an early age, around 13 or so. But before then, It might suprise you to know that I lived off the streets. I had to learn how to defend myself. I had to learn how to fight.

Your confused? Let me clear it up for you. I was taken in my Mrs. Ride when I was 13.

It had been a long time since then, but I had learned one thing that stuck with me forever. You can never rely on anyone, or trust them, for that matter. And from the looks of it, I wasn't the only one who knew that.

**So what did you guys think? PLEASE review and tell me all about it :) And Don't worry, there's more to Fang then there seems... ;)**


	2. Angel's Sunset

**Thanks so much to everyone who decided to follow my story and or review! Everyone made me smile! (: Hope you enjoy!**

Chapter 2

Max Pov:

The car ride is long. I could tell from the look on the boy's faces that they expected more conversation out of me. When Iggy pulls out his phone, looks at it, and then aims to hit Fang, I can only imagine what is being said about me.

Then again, why would I even care?

I lean against the car window and watch as the sky flashes by. Where was Angel right now? Was she safe? My heart ached but I knew I couldn't express any weakness around these guys. They were apparently very 'popular' as they put it, and they probably already looked down on me like I was nothing more than a piece of dirt.

I could hold my own here. But my guess is that Iggy's mom would have me kicked out by next week. I don't have the will to speak, there's nothing I can do. I'm a hopeless mess, and there's no way anyone living this California lifestyle would accept that, or want to put of with it.

Iggy pulls up to a beautiful house right next to the ocean, right along the beach. My eyes grow wide. I had had a good life back in Arizona, but my family was never super rich. I guessed that they were neighbors.

I quickly got out of the car and readjusted my backpack over my shoulder. I stood there for a second, my shoes dug deep into the light sand. The ocean looked crystal clear from here, the waves crashing up against the shore in a constant rhythm.

I sighed, because Angel would love this place. She would have loved the ocean so much. She was always in the pools back in Arizona. She loved water, and I did too. I had. I had loved water. Would it ever be the same?

"You coming Max?" Fang calls, standing a few feet away from me. His dark eyes flicker to the ocean, where he had caught me staring. "It's pretty neat, huh?"

I turn my attention away from the water and look at him. He's tall too, not as tall as Iggy, but tall enough to make me feel short. His black hair is overgrown slightly, but I can still see his eyes grazing me questioningly.

I nod at him and start following behind Iggy, who's already at the door of the house. "Hey mom!" he yells. "She's here!"

A blond woman with blue eyes just like Iggy's meets us at the door. Shes a couple inches shorter than me and has a lighter complexion, just as Iggy did, even though they lived in California. I wondered how that worked.

"Max! Hi, I'm April Griffin." she comes toward me as though to greet me, maybe give me a hug, when I flinch. She stops immediately but her voice doesn't change tone. Still gentle, kind...open. "Maximum. It's great to meet you. I hope you like it here." She smiles at me again and leans against the door frame.

"We were actually going to go swimming this afternoon. But as I'm sure you have a lot to unpack and you might not know how to swim, we can stay here instead. There's-"

I try and interrupt politely, "That's alright. I know how to swim, and this is all I've brought." I gesture to the backpack on my shoulders. "I didn't bring a swimsuit though."

Her smile brightens. "Sure. Fang, do you think Nudge would have a swimsuit Max could borrow?"

Fang looks at me, no expression on his tan face. "Probably. I'll go ask her for one. She's probably dying to meet you anyway." he winks at me and starts jogging over to the other house. I don't know why, but something about him annoys me.

"Alright Max, I'll show you to your room and let you have a moment to get settled in." she leads me up the stairs and into a bedroom with a beautiful balcony. The walls are painted sky blue, and there were patches of dark blue in certain places. The bottom of the bedroom rail was a light baby pink. The woman caught me eying it. "I'm sorry, Max. That's the one thing I didn't have time to repaint. If you don't like it we can change it right away."

A small, sad smile is on my lips. That was the exact color that Angel loved. Her favorite color. I feel like she's right beside me for a moment, jumping on the bed and squealing about how wonderful the room was. I snap out of my trance. "No, it's perfect Mrs. Griffin. Thanks." I manage a to smile and she leaves me alone for a few minutes.

I'm busy putting clothes in drawers when a little mop of blond hair pops around the corner of the door. "Hi, I'm Gazzy!" he steps out in front of me and walks over to my bed, plopping on top of it.

Well we know he's not shy.

"Hi..." I say, a funny look on my face. "I'm Max." he grins, his twinkly blue eyes lighting up.

"I like that name. It's not a normal name like Lily or Lisa-hey, that's Fang's girlfriend. Her name is Lissa." he says the name like it's a curse. He moves really close to me for a second, and looks both ways just to make sure no one is around. "You wanna know what I heard Iggy call her?" he whispers, "A b-i-t-c-h! Isn't that crazy? Max?" he grins at me, but before I can answer, he flops back down on the bed. "So your coming swimming with us!? That'll be so fun! I can teach you how to surf. I'm better than Iggy," his face is smug, "I'm even better than...Fang."

Suddenly Mrs. Griffin is yelling for him. "Gazzy!" the little boy's eyes grow big and he takes off out the door in a flash. "Bye Max!" he shouts before he leaves.

There's that little tug at my heart, the one only Angel could do. I turn away and get off of the floor, and sit on my new bed.

A few minutes later Fang swings around the door, pulling a bright eyed girl with him. "Max. Meet Nudge."

Her dark curls bounce around crazily as she runs over to greet me. She's darker skinned and very pretty. She looks around my age. "Max! It's so good to meet you! I was dying, I mean literally dying to meet you! I mean, Iggy was so nervous. Weren't you Iggy?" she looks around my room. "Omg. Fang, we totally left Iggy downstairs! Go Fang, go get him!" she points down the stairs with a frown on her face.

Fang shakes his head, smirks, and starts walking back down the stairs. Nudge gives me a satisfied look and shuts the door. "Good. Now that he's gone, I can show you this gorgeous swimsuit I brought for you!" she lays a two piece out on the bed. It's a deep blue and there's a necklace laid down by it.

"What's this?" I ask questioningly, holding up the necklace carefully. It shone a deep colored blue, and the beads around it were white and sharp.

"Everyone in our two families has one. There special. But I don't want to explain it's whole life story to you! Just go change, let me see how it looks!"

I roll my eyes but nod. "Alright. Thanks." I give her my best smile and walk into the bathroom to change. When I'm done I walk out and stand in front of Nudge, who, mind you, was also by a mirror. And let me tell you, it was a big mistake to put that mirror there.

"Nudge.." I say in a low, mortified voice. "I don't think I can wear this..."

She rolls her eyes. "Of course you can. Mine looks just like that...kind of. Anyway, you have like, the perfect body. You pull it off perfectly! And that necklace...Absolutely beautiful!" she smiles and leads me out the door.

That's fantastic. I don't even get shorts. Back home, I never would have agreed to wearing anything like this or, in fact, similar to this. But there's no reason to fight now, so I just go with it.

Nudge and I walk out of the empty house and closer to the water, where I can see everyone is already there. I don't feel as bad about my swimsuit when I Nudge's swimsuit as she jumps into the water.

Before anyone can see me, I hide behind a bunch of rocky slopes. Hoping no one catches me, I carefully inch toward the water until it's deep enough I can go underwater. I dive under.

The water feels good. I enjoy it and stay under as long as I can, opening my eyes and gliding through the water. When I resurface, I'm right in the middle of everyone. I catch Fang's eye.

"Max. Where have you been? You have to try surfing with me!"

I make a run for it but he dives after me playfully. "C'mon, it'll be fun. I promise! All you have to do is hold on."

I bite my lip and pull away from him quickly, frowning. No, no, no, no. Don't agree Max. Don't do it. He will do no good. "Fine." And he pulls me on to his board.

Fang's Pov:

I swim further out until I'm right near the perfect wave. Max is sitting on the edge, looking-get this-pretty smug. "This is going pretty good. I think I got this." she says, crossing her arms.

And then the wave actually comes, and she's wrapped around me just like that. I plan to show off, but she moves around so much that the board wobbles crazily. "Max, can you please-" and we flip over.

Max comes up for air, shes sputtering a bit, but she looks pretty unfazed. "That was great. I'm so impressed." she flashes a small smile, and the sadness in her eyes dims down a little bit.

She swims farther away from shore. There's a small island not a long ways away. I guess that's where she's headed. "Hey, are you sure you can swim out that far?"

"I'll be fine!" she yells from over her shoulder. Although she does look like a good swimmer, I decide to swim out with her.

I swim fast until were both side by side. Her tan skin shines in the sunlight, and I suddenly notice that she's wearing a bikini top. I feel a little disappointed that I wasn't there to see her out of the water. I suddenly notice what's around her neck.

"Hey," I swim closer, bringing her to a sudden stop. I slowly reach out to touch the necklace. "I've never seen this one before. Where did you get this from?..." all of our families had these small shark teeth or stones, things we've had ever since we were born. I thought I had seen everyone of them, but I had never seen the one Max was wearing.

"Nudge gave it to me," she says, stroking once more. "That's alright, isn't it?"

We pull up to the island shore. "Sure. I've just never seen that one before...I wonder where she found it." I can't help eye it. As we start to walk on the shore, Max seems to forget her choice of outfit.

She seems so innocent, I try and keep my eyes focused on her face. "Why did you want to come here?"

She shrugs. "I like adventures. I wanted to explore." she gives me a sideways glance. "You didn't have to come. I wanted to be alone, anyway." she digs her toes into the sand and plops down on the shore.

"I didn't mean it like that." I say, sitting beside her.

She doesn't say anything. She just stares off into the sky. I try and follow where her eyes lead. Sunset.

It's bright orange and red on the bottom, and then gold splashes along the middle. On the very top is the most softest pink you can imagine. I've never seen a pink that color, and trust me, Lissa has worn all sorts of pink. But like I said, it wasn't a normal shade. Soft, baby pink. I feel like a moron just thinking those words.

Max lays back on the shore. "You don't look as happy anymore." I notice, eying her curiously. "Does this remind you of someone?"

She sighs. I'm surprised when she actually speaks. "Something like that."

I have never been confused. People are easy for me to read. There simple and plain. But for just this once, I can't understand.

**I hope you liked it! Review and tell me please (: Suggestions are always welcome! **


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